Redundant
by cnfzdpsychosis
Summary: OK, this is a repost because the site hated me the first time.  Sky leaves SPD without saying why.  The other rangers aren't going to let him go that easily.  SkyBridge


A/N: Story time my friends. About a month ago my friend asked me to write a power rangers s.p.d. fic for her, with the pairing of Sky/Bridge. The only problem being that I've never watched the show and had no idea how to approach this. I did a little research of my own, and for the most part I tried to keep the characters in the role I understood them as, but hey...who doesn't like to have fun? I hope you enjoy, and I love reviews, good or bad - but preferably good...

Sky sighed as he finished packing. He didn't really want to leave but he knew he had to. He had screwed up, big time, and it couldn't be undone. Glancing at a tousled head of hair, he smiled softly. Bridge; he was his one weakness, his biggest mistake. He never should have fallen in love with him. It's why he was leaving, sneaking away in the middle of the night to avoid questions.

Sky had already informed Cruger of his intentions. The commander was disappointed, to say the least, but had conceded to Sky's wishes. So Sky had handed in his morpher and prepared to pack. He just wished he could have done things differently. Letting out a sigh, he stood staring down at the sleeping green ranger. Leaning down, Sky whispered, "I'll always love you…" before leaving S.P.D. for good.

Climbing onto his motorcycle, Sky took off into the night. He kept his eyes forward, knowing that if he looked back he'd never leave. If he had looked back, he'd have seen Cruger watching him from on top of the roof. Silently, he shook his head as he reentered the building. It was time to straighten things out.

* * *

Waking with a start, Bridge instinctively sought out Sky's familiar aura, needing it to center himself. Not finding it, he sat up with a groan. He had not slept well. Sleep, however, was the last thing on his mind as shock seeped into his brain. The room was half empty. Running into the hallway, Bridge sought his other teammates, not bothering to change his clothes.

"Bridge, where's the fire?" Spinning, Bridge came face-to-face with Jack.

"Sky's gone!" Bridge was near hysterics. By now he was almost completely dependent on the blue ranger's presence to kept the emotions at bay.

"Whoa! Calm down, Bridge. He's probably training or something." Bridge shook his head.

"Or something! He's _gone_, Jack; his stuff, too." Realization dawned on Jack's face as Syd and Z joined them.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Syd asked, noting the two looks of shock and worry.

"Sky left. For good…" Jack stated, shock evident in his voice as well.

"What?"

"Rangers!" Cruger barked, startling them. All four snapped to attention.

"Sir!" Cruger eyed the dismayed faces.

"I think it's time to show you something." Following their commander, they entered a medical room. Pulling a video off a shelf, Cruger stood aside as it loaded, letting the rangers watch as Dr. Manx and Sky popped onto the screen.

"Sky, Doggy asked me to analyze you. He says you're distancing yourself from your teammates." Sky shrugged. "You're doing it now, Sky. Did something happen when you were younger?" Sky's head snapped up and he eyed Dr. Manx as if deciding whether or not he could trust her. She sighed patiently. "Sky, in order to help you, I need to know what happened."

"After my dad died, my mom had this mental break down," he began slowly. "It wasn't that bad…she'd forget to do things, just minor details that didn't really matter anyways. One day, though, something happened, she just snapped, and before I knew it, one moment she'd be fine, the next she'd be throwing insults. She never hit me, just yelled. Most of the time she didn't even know what she was doing. The rest of the time, she'd suddenly stop, and then break down sobbing and apologizing. By the time she got professional help, the damage was already done. My mind became it's own force field, it would just shut down to avoid the pain. I guess it happened so often, I became terrified of having to talk to people, so I automatically put that force field up." Sky finished softly, turning his face back to Kat, emotionless as ever.

"Right…good." Kat nodded as she finished scribbling. "But," she continued, "it's put you in a bad spot. While you know all about your teammates, whenever they tried to learn more about you, they were shut out. Now, all they have is a misguided perception of you." Sky nodded his understanding. "Right now…Doggy also mentioned a substantial growth in your power. I'd like to talk about that before you leave." Sky glanced hesitantly at the camera. "It's fine, no one sees these except for Doggy and myself," she assured.

"Bridge has nightmares," Sky whispered. "These god-awful images from the negative emotions he picks up. I tried to wake him once and I got sucked into one of them. I mean, they're so horrendous; they scared _me_."

Three disapproving glares rested on Bridge.

"You should have told us," Jack admonished.

"We need to know when you're not sleeping well, Bridge. It affects the entire team." Z sighed, before they turned their attention back to the screen.

"I didn't know what to do," Sky was continuing. "I knew he'd get upset if I said anything, either to him or to anyone else, so the next night, I waited until he fell asleep and I tried putting him into a force field. I knew my limit, from the tests that you ran, so I tried to push myself a little farther each night." Sky shrugged again. "It seems to work."

The remaining rangers were shocked. They'd never seen this kind, caring side of the blue ranger. Bridge stood, tears streaming silently, amazed at the sacrifice his friend had made for him.

"One last thing…" Kat said. "You and Jack, what's going on?"

"Honestly, I don't know. I guess since Birdy wanted me to be the Red Ranger, Jack feels threatened. Truthfully, I think he deserves it. He's a good leader. I know everyone expected it of me because of my dad, but…" he shrugged, "…I like being blue."

Cruger shut off the video, turning to face the rangers. Shock was clearly written on their faces. Never before had they seen Sky in such a positive light.

"Do you understand now?" Cruger asked gruffly. Four heads nodded. "Good. This is his last known address," he said, handing Jack a slip of paper. "I want Schuyler Tate back."

* * *

Sky stared at the dilapidated house, not really wanting to enter it. He hadn't entered since he was taken to S.P.D. His mother had been taken into full time care, so no one had been inside for years.

"You know, you might live more comfortably if you actually went inside." Sky smiled softly.

"Hello, J.D.," he responded softly, not bothering to turn around.

"So," the girl responded, moving to stand next to the ex-ranger. "You finally get out of this dump, only to come back. Wanna talk about it?" Sky smirked.

"Wanna help me clean?" J.D. rolled her eyes.

"I'll clean if you talk." Sky nodded.

"Fair enough."

* * *

"So you ditched because you fell in love? That's so stupid. You should have told him. Better yet, you could have written him a song. You do still sing, don't you?" J.D. paused from dusting, glancing to where Sky stood wiping down windows.

"Not as much. Didn't really have much time for it. Though…" he admitted slowly, "…I did write a song for him. 'Redundant'." J.D. sighed, shaking her head.

"You got it bad, Sky," she stated.

"Don't I know it," he sighed, pausing in his ministrations. "It's why I left. I figured if the feeling wouldn't dissipate, I would. At least I wouldn't be able to act on them."

"You should have acted on them though." J.D. remained adamant.

"J.D., I don't think Bridge would have appreciated me pinning him down and fucking him senseless." J.D. paused, blinking.

"Did you ask him that?"

"J.D.!"

"Fine," she sighed. "I'm gonna go get fresh water to mop the floor," she stated, grabbing the bucket Sky had been using for the windows. "You can stay here and be a depressing black cloud all by yourself.

"Thank God…" he muttered as she left the room.

"By the way," she said, sticking her head back into the room. "This discussion is far from over."

"God dammit!"

* * *

"Damn, could his house be any harder to find?" Jack grumbled as the four rangers turned down yet another street. "Why did he leave anyway?"

"He left because of me," a voice whispered. Three sets of eyes turned once again onto Bridge.

"Did something happen?" Z asked. Bridge shrugged.

"I…don't know. Last night, I felt this really strong aura and it woke me, but not entirely, so I was still half-asleep. I thought I heard him say 'I'll always love you' but I thought I was dreaming. I don't know what to do because I like him, I really do but…I don't want to screw this up," he finished, exasperated with himself.

"Do you love him?" Syd asked.

"I don't know…" he sighed, messing up his already messy hair.

"So, Sky loves you, but doesn't know that you know," Z concluded, still trying to catch up. Bridge's shoulders sagged in defeat. "You might want to figure out how you feel about Sky, then," she added.

"But don't worry," Jack said clapping him on the back. "At the rate it's taking us to find his house, you'll have a good, long while to think about it."

"Yeah," Syd added sweetly. "And once we get there, we'll get this all straightened out. Now let's find Sky's house so we can lock the two of you in a closet, forcing you to confront your feelings and talk about how much you love each other and want to have lots of sex."

"Syd…" Bridge groaned. Z and Jack stood looking shell-shocked.

"I never knew that side of Syd…" Jack murmured.

"I never _wanted_ to know that side of Syd…" Z replied.

* * *

"Put that down! No, don't put it – ok, look, just stop!" J.D. froze, silently hoping to escape the wrath of an enraged Sky.

"What?" She inquired innocently. Sky merely seethed.

"J.D., thank-you for your help, but for both of our sakes, and your safety, I really think you need to leave." J.D. sighed.

"Sky, I'll leave, but you really need to learn to chill out and go with the flow. Not everything has to be perfect."

"I know," he whispered. "It's just, to me, by rearranging the house and giving it a good wash, I'm getting rid of more than just the grime. I'm getting rid of bad memories." J.D. sighed again, letting Sky lead her to the door.

"Just promise me you won't bottle it all up inside and let it fester." Sky rolled his eyes, pulling open the door just as the doorbell rang. Sky's mouth dropped open and J.D. raised her eyebrows as Jack, Syd, Z, and Bridge stared back. "Awkward…" Sky glared at her. "What?" She asked. "It is."

"Um, J.D., this is Jack, Syd, Z, and Bridge," he said, pointing to each ranger in turn. "Guys, this is my friend J.D., I grew up with her."

"And with that being said, I take my leave," she said with a wink, scooting out the door. "Although," she said, pausing. "Sky, I'd really like to hear that song you wrote." Sky glared at the mischievous twinkle in her eye. "Sometime soon, maybe?"

"Get out, loser," he growled, all but slamming the door on her after the four rangers had entered.

"You write songs?" Bridge asked, genuinely surprised. Sky shrugged.

"It's a hobby," he responded. "So what are you guys doing out here?"

"We stopped in for a chat, y'know, just talk some things out…"

"Lock you and Bridge in a closet and force you to talk…"

"Drag your ass back to S.P.D. headquarters…" Came the responses, all at the same time.

Sky looked from Z to Syd to Jack before muttering, "O…kay…" Bridge stayed to the outside of the room. He knew that he and Sky needed to talk, but he didn't know what to say. Luckily, he was saved from having to say anything.

"Look, Sky," Jack started after everyone had sat down. "Cruger showed us the video." Sky visibly stiffened but said nothing. "Obviously, none of us really know you."

"I think," Syd continued, "that you're so used to pushing people away, that we just assumed you were always going to be like that. We didn't give you a chance to change."

"My god, you're intervening me…" Sky muttered, making the rangers laugh.

"Well, it's true!" Z chimed. "We didn't take the time to know 'you', which sucks because you know everything about us…" Silence pervaded as the rangers looked at the ex-blue ranger.

"Sky, we busted ass all day trying to find this place, the least you could do is come back to S.P.D. and try to work things out! This isn't exactly the easiest thing to find, you know." Jack grumbled. Sky sighed, running a hand through his hair. He hadn't counted on being chased down by his former teammates. Said teammates looked ready to drag him back to S.P.D. if he said no. Not that he was going to; he just wasn't going to make it easy.

"Sky," Bridge called softly. "We really want you to come back. We all really need you." 'I really need you…' he amended in his head. Sky sighed again, nodding his acquiescence.

"All right," he muttered, standing. "I hate this house anyways," he continued, more to himself than anyone else.

"That's fine, 'cause now you get to go back and room with Bridge." Syd grinned. Sky fought the urge to shove them all out of the house and lock the door. Anything to stop himself from rooming with Bridge. Instead, he merely shrugged.

"Hey, if he starts talking in his sleep again, I'm dumping him in your room," he replied, locking the door behind him.

* * *

He was not avoiding Bridge. People were just glad he was back and since he was making an honest effort to reach out to other people, his schedule was really full. But he was not avoiding Bridge.

And Bridge was not waiting up for Sky like a jealous housewife. He had important matters to discuss with his friend and they would be discussed tonight, even if he had to tie the older boy down. But he was not acting like a jealous housewife…much.

Bridge fidgeted on his bed, waiting nervously for Sky to turn in. He wished he could turn the light on but if Sky saw the light, he'd stay out even later, waiting for Bridge to fall asleep. As the door slid open, he shielded his eyes from the hallway lights.

"Bridge, what are you still doing up?" Sky asked, turning on the light. Bridge blinked rapidly, letting his eyes adjust before answering.

"Well, seeing as how my best friend is ignoring me, I thought I might try and get a word in with him when I could." Bridge answered, rolling his eyes. Sky cringed, but said nothing. "Sky, why are you avoiding me?" Bridge knew the answer, but he desperately wanted to hear Sky say it again, so he played dumb.

"Bridge, look, can this wait?" Sky was tense; he wasn't ready to have Bridge hate him yet. Bridge shook his head.

"Not really." He paused. "Does this have something to do with why you left S.P.D.?" Sky instantly froze before whirling on Bridge.

"Only everything." He stated, unnervingly calm. "I left because I'm in love with my best friend, and there's nothing in the world that's going to change it." Sky turned, exiting the room. Bridge stood in shock, finally understanding his feelings for Sky.

* * *

"Has anyone seen Sky?" Bridge asked. He had been searching for him for the majority of the night, and with very few people up at this late of an hour, it was becoming increasingly difficult to find him.

"Check the roof," came Syd's response. Jack didn't even bother turning from his coffee.

"Think they'll finally get together?" He asked after Bridge left.

"If not, there's always my closet plan…"

* * *

As Bridge climbed the steps to the roof he could hear the music drifting through the air. Opening the door quietly, Bridge slipped through, allowing himself to listen to Sky sing.

"We're living in repetition. Content in the same old shtick again. Now the routine's turning to contention. Like a production line going over and over and over, roller coaster.

"Now I cannot speak, I've lost my voice, I'm speechless and redundant, 'cause I love you's not enough, I'm lost for words."

Bridge inched closer to where Sky sat strumming the guitar. He was practically hypnotized by the sweet sadness of his voice. Quietly, Sky continued singing, unaware that he was being watched.

"Choreographed by lack of passion. Prototypes of what we were. Went full circle 'til I'm nauseous. Taken for granted now. Now I waste it, faked it, ate it, now I hate it

"'Cause I cannot speak, I lost my voice, I'm speechless and redundant, 'cause I love you's not enough, I'm lost for words.

"Now I cannot speak, I lost my voice, I'm speechless and redundant, 'cause I love you's not enough, I'm lost for words…"

Sky sighed softly, gently setting the guitar aside as he watched the sunrise. Bridge moved to sit next to him.

"It's beautiful," he whispered. Sky shrugged.

"Nothing you can't watch every morning and night."

"I meant the song," he said, watching his reaction from the corner of his eye. Sky froze.

"You heard it?" Bridge nodded. "You like it?" Sky asked hesitantly. Again, Bridge nodded. Sky relaxed, smiling softly. "I wrote it for you." It was Bridge's turn to freeze.

"You wrote it for me?" Sky nodded. Bridge broke into a grin. "You know…" he said slowly, "this is something I never expected from you." Sky looked at him in confusion.

"What?"

"First, you lose sleep so I'll stop having nightmares. Then you sneak off in the middle of the night after declaring your love for me when I'm half-asleep, only to come back and ignore me during daylight hours, yet still making sure I don't have nightmares – I'm not finished," he said, seeing Sky open his mouth to protest. Sky shut his mouth with a 'click' of his teeth. "Then, you confess your love for me when I'm fully awake yet scamper off leaving me to try and rewire my brain circuits because my mind got blown. And then, after all that, you hide on the roof, making me spend half the night searching for you and you are so lucky that we have today off, because I need sleep."

Finishing with a flourish, Bridge stared indignantly at Sky who was trying hard not to laugh. Bridge tapped his foot – having started pacing while talking – waiting for Sky to say something.

"Sorry?" Sky choked out.

"I don't believe you. Get your ass over here and apologize properly." Sky laughed at Bridge's demanding tone while standing up. Bridge walked over, throwing his arms around Sky's neck. "Love you," he murmured, tightening his hold as Sky wrapped his arms around Bridge's waist.

"Love you." Sky responded. "Always."


End file.
